Black with Silver
by fable2112
Summary: MWPP's second year at Hogwarts. Sirius decides to investigate his best friend's monthly disappearances.


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Black with Silver

Coincidence? It couldn't be. He had to find out the truth.

Month after month, for three days, his best friend disappeared. Month after month, for three days, the most horrible screaming sounds came from the Shrieking Shack - and the two events coincided perfectly. Remus had told him, and the other two, that his mother was ill - but he had never told them what her illness was.

_And again, he is gone, without a true word of explanation._

Could it be? Could the "illness" of Remus's mother be lycanthropy? Could Dumbledore, for some reason, be keeping her cooped up in the Shrieking Shack, so her son would be close by in case anything really horrible went wrong? It seemed strange, but given the signs, it made sense. More sense than anything else. It would explain the reluctance Remus showed to talk about his family or his home, it would explain his obvious lack of money, and it would explain the disappearances and the screams - screams which, come to think of it, were like a nightmare reflection of his best friend's quiet voice.

This month, he would know for sure. He couldn't leave Remus to deal with this by himself, not anymore, not when he knew what was really wrong. Besides, what if his mother didn't recognize him anymore, what if she hurt him, or killed him...or turned _him_ into a werewolf?

He couldn't, _could not,_ leave Remus alone with this. Sure, he was only twelve years old, but so was Remus. 

_And if he has to live with it, the knowledge that there is no hope and no cure for his mother, the least I can do is help him endure it. I will risk what I must risk._ _The Sorting Hat put me in Gryffindor, that must mean I can be brave..._

He had stolen belladonna from the Potions lab, and borrowed the Invisibility Cloak from James to hunt down a silver dagger. James had wondered where he was going and why, of course, but Sirius just looked at him and said, "Please, just trust me on this one. I know, I usually let you in on these things, but I can't, not yet."

"You're getting as mysterious as Remus, these days, Sirius. What's wrong with you?"

"I told you, I can't talk about it. Please, just trust me."

James had trusted him. If only Remus would do the same. First, though, Sirius needed to borrow the cloak again, and somehow he convinced James to let him. Again. This time, James didn't even try to ask why.

_Cloak, broomstick, belladonna, and silver blade...werewolf, here I come!_

He hid beneath the cloak and watched as Professor Dumbledore beckoned Remus to follow him. Remus did, looking a bit frightened and reluctant. Sirius wondered how he could stand it, month after month. Checking to make sure he was completely concealed beneath the cloak, he followed. When they reached the Whomping Willow, he watched Dumbledore press the knot that caused the branches to stay still and the door to open. He waited until Dumbledore left - alone. Waited until the strange ghostly noises were heard from the Shrieking Shack. Waited until he was sure he had the courage to face whatever it was he might find. When he at last reached for the knot, he was stunned by what he saw. There was nobody there except for Remus - if the creature he saw was, in fact, Remus. 

_Of course it was Remus. Who else could it be? Remus did not leave with Dumbledore, after all._

Sirius realized his theory was just slightly off. Remus did not have a mother who was a werewolf; he _was_ the werewolf! His disappearances had nothing to do with his family, nothing whatsoever. Sirius watched in shock and dismay as his gentle, soft-spoken companion thrashed about senselessly, destroying much of what was in the small room. The shock wore off, turned to fear as he realized that Remus might not recognize him now, and that the Invisibility Cloak would do nothing to stop Remus from tracking him by scent. He ran, then quickly hopped on the broomstick and flew back to Gryffindor Tower.

Before he returned, he rested his hand on the dagger. He wondered where the bite was, if it had left a scar, what it _felt_ like. The fear he had felt as he watched Remus, concealed beneath the Invisibility Cloak, was replaced by a fascination for which he had no words. He had always wanted to be closer to him, to know, to understand what it was that went on inside his head, inside his heart. He would gladly have cut a similar scar into his own skin - just to have some idea - or returned to the Shack and let Remus spread the curse to him. 

_For his sake, though, I will not let him do that - he would never forgive himself._

His eyes lit up as he realized he still had the Invisibility Cloak. Time for a little light reading. He had learned about the belladonna and the dagger from library books. His History of Magic professor had, just recently, explained what Animagi were. Perhaps, in the Restricted Section of the library, he could learn to become one. It wouldn't be quite the same, but it would bring him closer to Remus, especially if he could learn to transform into something like a wolf. He looked at the stars, silver against the black of the sky, and thought for a while.

_Sirius, the Dog Star, me. My name. My fate - I will choose to become, for the sake of friendship, what he had no choice but to become._


End file.
